When Midnight Strikes
by Orangeflight of ShadowClan
Summary: Telling Redfur the prophecy obviously wasn't enough. And now the whole Clan knows. They think Snowpaw is some sort of goddess, and I'm just the setback. But I'll show them… I'll show them all. HIATUS
1. Prologue

**_When Midnight Strikes_**

**Summary: Telling Redfur the prophecy obviously wasn't enough. And now the whole Clan knows. They think Snowpaw is some sort of goddess, and I'm just the setback. But I'll show them… I'll show them all.**

* * *

_Prologue_

A silver tabby she-cat slipped out of the medicine den silently, her green eyes shining in determination. The ferns rustled slightly as a breeze swept through camp. She shivered slightly, but managed to make her way over to the warriors den.

"Redfur," she meowed softly. "Are you there?"

A small groan came from inside the dark den, and she saw a ginger form illuminate in the darkness. _Redfur! _Her eyes glowed in hope as the ginger tom made his way out of the den without stepping on anyone's tail.

"Echoleaf," Redfur greeted, opening his jaws in a yawn. "What's the matter? I was having a pretty good dream."

Echoleaf rolled her eyes. "Sorry that what I have to say is too rubbish for your ears; I'm being serious, Redfur! I need to talk to you about something."

"What is it this time?" the ginger tom muttered, glaring at the ground with his sharp green eyes.

The silver tabby then for some reason felt incredibly nervous. She stared at her paws silently, trying to think of something to say. She had developed a crush on him when they were kits, but when Dappleshine came in the picture, they became mates as soon as they were warriors. Echoleaf had been angry at first, but she learned to accept the tortoiseshell she-cat as long as Redfur was happy. Later, she became a medicine cat under Blueleaf's training, but he had died at her naming ceremony. She sighed, remembering the blue-gray tom.

"_Any day now_!"

Echoleaf snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Redfur's snappy voice. She looked up to see the red-orange tom's fur fluffed up in fury. "I didn't get woken up to see you _stand _there, did I?"

"Of course not," the tabby medicine cat snapped back. "I came to tell you about a prophecy…"

Redfur perked his ears at this, interest shining in his green depths. "What prophecy?" he asked curiously.

"When midnight strikes, the snowy owl will take flight," Echoleaf recited perfectly, her whiskers twitching in satisfaction.

Redfur seemed to be thinking hard—his face was blank, but his eyes were flickering with many emotions she couldn't name.

It seemed like seasons passed before Redfur's face actually showed emotion, and it was excitement. "Echoleaf, don't you see?" he purred. "The prophecy is about my kits!"

The medicine cat tilted her head in mock confusion. "Oh, you _really _think so? I didn't know!" she meowed sarcastically. "Really, Redfur, you have to think! Why in the name of StarClan would I be telling you this if they _weren't_ the ones mentioned?!"

The ginger tom shrugged, but kept his happy face on anyways. "I can't believe it! Dappleshine will be so proud!"

"Yes, but one of the kits has to be bad," Echoleaf pointed out flatly.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say it's Midnightkit," the tom meowed, rolling his eyes. "I mean, Snowkit couldn't be bad… It's impossible!"

_And Midnightkit being bad is possible? _Echoleaf wanted to retort, but didn't say anything. She just nodded, doubt shining in her eyes, and turned around, padding back into the medicine den.

The last she saw of Redfur was his ginger tail disappearing into the warriors den.

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**Yay, I finally found a story I can stick with! You know what I always say, read and review!**


	2. Chapter 1

_When Midnight Strikes_

**Thank you, StormxRaven and {Guest}, for the nice reviews! And now here's the next part of _When Midnight Strikes_!**

_Chapter 1_

Midnightkit opened her jaws in a yawn as sunlight streamed through the darkness of her closed eyes. She shuffled around in her nest, feeling Dappleshine's warmth, but Snowkit, her sister, was missing. She snapped open her eyes immediately, looking around frantically for the snow-white pelt of her sister.

She nudged her mother when she couldn't find it. Dappleshine must have been having a good dream because she snapped as soon as she opened her eyes. "Midnightkit! Why in the world did you wake me up?"

So she proceeded to tell her about Snowkit.

Well, that's how Midnightkit _wished_ her morning was. Instead, it was completely the opposite.

"Midnightkit, wake up," a voice hissed in her ear. She blinked open her wide golden eyes, finding that Snowkit had woke her up.

"What do you want?" the black she-kit asked groggily, shaking her head to try to wake up. Dim sunlight streamed through the Nursery, showing it was dawn. _My StarClan… only the _dawn _patrol should be up!_

"I wanted to get a head start on the day." _More like you wanted to annoy me more._

Midnightkit let out a sigh, shaking her head and turning away from her snow-pelted sister. "I'm too tired," she yawned, closing her eyes.

"No, wake up," Snowkit insisted, shaking her with her front paws. "I want to explore camp, and Dappleshine won't let me unless you wake up!"

She groaned, rolling over and blinking her eyes open to stare into Snowkit's blue irises. "Look Snowkit. I promise that I'll explore the camp with you… just **not **right now," she grumbled.

"But—"

Midnightkit just groaned again and closed her eyes, letting sleep take her into the darkness.

* * *

"Midnightkit, wake up," a voice hissed in her ear.

The black she-kit grumbled, but opened her eyes anyway. _Hey, doesn't this seem familiar?_

But instead, she was face-to-face with her mother, Dappleshine. "Why do people keep waking me up?" she asked, tilting her head at the tortoiseshell she-cat.

"Well, I woke you up because Kestrelstar is holding a meeting." And then her mother padded out. Just like that.

Midnightkit blinked after her. _Who the heck is Kestrelstar anyways? Is he like, the leader or something? But then again, Dappleshine always told me that leaders had "star" after their name… but what in the name of StarClan is "kestrel"? _She shook her head and just padded out of the Nursery. She spotted her mother's tortoiseshell pelt and walked towards her, settling down.

"We have gathered here today so Yellowpaw, one of our bravest apprentices, can be made a warrior. Yellowpaw, do you accept the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

The yellow-cream pelt of a she-cat was fluffed up in excitement at the front of the crowd. "Of course!" she meowed, her voice laced with joy.

"Then from this moment on, your name shall be Yellowgaze, for your beautiful amber eyes," a golden brown tom called for a big rock. He then jumped down, padding towards the yellow-pelted she-cat and placing his nose on her head.

"Yellowgaze! Yellowgaze!" The Clan cheered, Midnightkit joining in. She had no idea who this she-cat was, but she must be important if so many cats in the Clan liked her.

As the cats around her dispersed to their normal duties, the black she-kit padded towards Yellowgaze, her eyes shining in admiration. "Congratulations, Yellowgaze," Midnightkit meowed, her ear twitching slightly.

Yellowgaze glanced at her, her amber eyes widening in surprise. But that surprise was soon replaced by anger. She huffed, and with her nose in the air, padded towards the warriors den.

Midnightkit stared dumbfounded as the golden she-cat disappeared into the den at the other side of camp. _Was it something I said?_

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**Eh, sorry if I made a few parts laughable… I did that on accident. It's not supposed to be funny (I think) xD. Well, anyways, please read and review!**


	3. Chapter 2

**_When Midnight Strikes_**

**Thank you, GreeceXCats527, Cinderfire16, LeafpoolandCrowfeather4ever, and Pumpkinfur for reviewing! And Leafpool, I'll try to make the chapter longer, but this is honestly the best I can do ever since the original of this… -shiver- It had 14 chapters… with 4,000 words… And Pumpkinfur: I honestly don't know, although it's the plot for the story xD… Well, anyways, here's the next chapter of the story!**

_Chapter 2_

Midnightkit frowned slightly as Kestrelstar pressed his nose against Snowkit's, or should she say, _Snowpaw's, _head. Now she was officially the _leader's _apprentice. This seriously couldn't get any worse.

When Kestrelstar turned to her, she stood up straight, trying not to show she was weak. She didn't want to believe she was weak, either. "Midnightkit, you will know be known as Midnightpaw. Your mentor is Yellowgaze."

Midnightpaw just frowned even more at that statement. _I stand corrected. _Mumbling curses under her breath, the fluffy black she-cat padded on the sandy floor towards the yellow-cream warrior, a smug look on her face. Yellowgaze leaned her head down like she was about to press her nose against her's, but instead, bit her ear.

Holding back a yowl of pain, Midnightpaw just pretended Yellowgaze had done the right thing and turned back to the Clan. "Snowpaw! Snowpaw!" They cheered.

The black she-cat muttered more curses and then turned to Yellowgaze. "Well, what are we doing today?" she asked, a bored look on her face.

"Battle training. But not at the Sandy Hollow."

_...Crap._

* * *

Midnightpaw collapsed in a heap of midnight black fur when they arrived at the training spot, gasping for breath. "W-why did that take so much out of me… and you're f-fine?" she asked Yellowgaze, who just stood over her with a blank look on her face.

"Sweetie, I'm a warrior, and you're the apprentice," Yellowgaze said icily, her blank look immediately transforming into a glare. "Of course you're tired."

Midnightpaw just rolled her eyes and pushed herself to her paws. "So why are we here? What's so special about this place?" She observed her surroundings more carefully. They seemed to be in a dim place in the forest. Tall trees towered towards the sky, blocking the sunlight, although its rays still made it through just barely. _This seems like a nice place for a midnight ambush if a Clan was here… _

"This is a perfect place for a midnight ambush," Yellowgaze explained sternly, as if repeating Midnightpaw's thoughts. "Therefore a great training place for apprentices. If we can excel your skills as a warrior, we could ambush ShadowClan, as well as WindClan."

"Ambush ShadowClan?" she murmured quietly so her fluffy cream-yellow mentor couldn't hear. Midnightpaw thought back to her kit days with Snowpaw, whenever they played Leader of the Clans, the snow-white apprentice would always choose ShadowClan… She shook the thought away, seeing as there wasn't any importance to it.

"Well, let me teach you some moves, and then we can spar," Yellowgaze suggested with a weird tone in her voice. It sounded almost… taunting. _Is she taunting me?! _

Midnightpaw glared at her mentor. "Alright," she meowed slowly. She sat back as Yellowgaze started to demonstrate a battle move, jumping into the air and blocking the sun to blind the enemy. And then she came down with so much force a monster could've been scared away.

"That is the Blinding Pounce," her mentor meowed coldly. "If you can't learn it, there will be consequences."

Midnightpaw just huffed as if she was expecting that. "Like you could do anything to me without getting in trouble," she muttered under her breath, leaping towards the sun with outstretched paws. When she plummeted towards the ground, she targeted Yellowgaze, heading straight for her. What Midnightpaw didn't expect was for her to sidestep and the black she-cat landed face-first in the ground.

Suddenly, she felt teeth grip her scruff and she was pulled upwards. "You should really think before going against an _experienced warrior_," Yellowgaze said scathingly, licking her paw before rubbing it over her ear.

"If you're so tough, why don't you show me?" Midnightpaw challenged, taking a step forward.

"Bring it on, puny apprentice! But that fight's for another time. It's getting late, so let's go," the warrior hissed before turning away, padding through the forest.

For some reason, on the rest of the way to camp, the black apprentice felt lightheaded. Midnightpaw pushed the feeling out of her head when she padded into camp. Yellowgaze immediately left her side for a thrush at the fresh-kill pile, leaving her trailing through the sand in camp.

"Midnightpaw!" Snowpaw's voice echoed through her thoughts and the said apprentice whipped around to see her snow-white sister running towards her. "Midnightpaw," she breathed when she reached her, "how was training?"

"Yellowgaze doesn't really like me, but I proved I was good at battle training," the black apprentice said proudly, but she slumped slightly.

"Are you okay?" Snowpaw asked, concerned as Midnightpaw continued to slump.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine!" the black she-cat purred, immediately standing up straight, but a sharp pain flowed through her head, making her wince.

"Are you sure?" The snow-white cat nudged her sister.

"Of course, why wouldn't I b-be…" More pain started to envelop in her head and she collapsed. The last thing she saw before blacking out was Snowpaw rushing towards the medicine den.

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**I enjoyed writing this chapter, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Please review! And also, don't worry people who read the original of this, Snowpaw will become what you thought she was soon, and a certain gray tom will come in soon, too! So stay tuned until the next chapter, folks!**


	4. Chapter 3

**_When Midnight Strikes_**

**Thank you, Brightcloud0915 for reviewing! Now, it's time for the story! Enjoy the next chapter of _When Midnight Strikes, _and don't forget to read and review!**

_Chapter 3_

Midnightpaw glanced around at her surroundings. Trees towered over on all sides, and they blocked the sunlight… just like when she was battle training…. Suddenly, a cream-yellow shape appeared in front of her.

Squinting, she realized it was a cat, with sparkles shining in her fur. Her amber eyes glowed with seriousness, and that's when Midnightpaw realized it was Yellowgaze. The warrior padded towards her silent, and the fluffy midnight-pelted apprentice felt petrified by fear.

Slowly, Yellowgaze leaned down and pressed her nose against Midnightpaw's head. "Greetings, young one," she purred softly, stepping back and looking at her with soft amber eyes.

"Y-Yellowgaze? What's wrong with you?" Midnightpaw asked, a little shaken at the way her mentor was speaking to her. "You were just an apprentice a few moons ago! You're acting like you're an elder!"

"No, silly," Yellowgaze meowed, her whiskers twitching in amusement. "I'm not Yellowgaze, although I do look like her… but that's not the point! StarClan has called you here for a reason."

Midnightpaw would've smacked herself with her tail if she could. _I can't believe I thought she was Yellowgaze! Her personality is way too different than this cat! _So she just tilted her head at what the look-a-like meant. "So… why _am_ I here?" she asked slowly.

"I am here to tell you of something special… _When midnight strikes, the snowy owl will take flight_." Suddenly, a gust of wind surged through the trees, lifting Midnightpaw off her paws.

"W-what does it mean?" she yowled loudly. The roaring wind was getting louder and louder until finally, it just stopped. With a loud thud, her golden eyes snapped open.

* * *

"Midnightpaw, are you okay?"

The fluffy black she-cat flipped over to face her snow-pelted sister. "I'm fine, Snowpaw. What did Echoleaf say?" she asked curiously, her eyes shining slightly.

"She said you were just tired. Yellowgaze must've worked you too hard," her sister mewed worriedly. "Midnightpaw, next time, please tell me if you feel tired. I trust you a lot, and you should too." Snowpaw lowered herself down to lie down beside her sister.

"I do trust you," Midnightpaw murmured in her ear. "It's just that—"

"May all cats in camp gather under the High Ledge!" Kestrelstar's voice interrupted her meow and the black she-cat immediately jumped to her paws.

The two she-cats padded out of the medicine den to see most of the Clan gathered around the ledge. Next to Kestrelstar on the ledge was a gray tom with darker gray paws and ears. When Snowpaw caught sight of him, she immediately bristled. "Who is that?" she hissed.

Midnightpaw felt lost for words. The gray tom's fur shone brightly as the sun started to set behind him, and his emerald green eyes were sharp too. _Wow, he's really handsome… _She shook her head to clear the thought. She can't be falling for a tom she barely knew!

"This is Gray, a rogue we found on our territory," Kestrelstar began. "He is willing to join our Clan, and I'm letting him."

Shocked murmurs filled the crowd of cats. Midnightpaw fluffed her pelt up slightly next to her snow-white sister, who was looking at her golden-brown leader in outrage.

"But he's not clanborn! You have to have _real _warrior blood to survive in the forest," Snowpaw spat, her fur bristling. "You're really stupid if you're letting him join ThunderClan!"

"We're only testing him," Kestrelstar explained calmly, his green eyes flashing towards the apprentice. "If he fails, then we are banishing him."

Snowpaw seemed relieved by that and her flattened ears returned to their normal position. "Not that he'll survive long," she whispered in Midnightpaw's ear.

"He could prove to be really good, ya know," the fluffy black cat whispered back.

Her sister flashed her a look of disbelief before turning back to Kestrelstar. "By the power of StarClan, I grant this rogue an apprentice name. His name will be Graypaw until he becomes a warrior. Your mentor will be Stormheart."

The newly named Graypaw leaped down from the High Ledge and pressed his nose against the blue-gray deputy. Midnightpaw swore she saw a look of triumph cross Stormheart's face before it disappeared.

"Well, let's go congratulate the loser," Snowpaw growled. "Of course, that's what you would do, but I don't know if your hare-brained or not." She huffed and padded towards the apprentice's den, her head high.

Midnightpaw stared after her for a minute. _What did she mean by that…? And what's with the random change of attitude? _She just shook her head and padded towards Graypaw just as the sun disappeared over the horizon.

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**Well, that was chapter 4! And Graypaw has made an appearance! :D It's a little different from the original, where he was just a normal warrior apprentice, but as you can see, I changed that! And what do you think of Snowpaw's change of attitude? And especially, the prophecy! All will be revealed in the next chapter of **_**When Midnight Strikes**_**!**


	5. Chapter 4

**_When Midnight Strikes_**

**Thank you, snowstripe482 and RandomWarriorsFan228 for reviewing! If anyone is confused by what I mean about the original of this, just PM me and I'll show you the story link. I deleted it, but I still have the files of it XD. It's actually called _The Midnight Sky_… Well *cough* anyways, here's the next chapter!**

_Chapter 4_

Midnightpaw pounced on the mouse just as it dropped a nut and was about to run away in fear. Warm blood leaked through the slash she had made and she hesitantly licked her paws. She vaguely remembered what Yellowgaze had said that morning.

* * *

_The fluffy black she-cat stretched as she padded out of the apprentice's den, Graypaw not far behind. "Snowpaw can be annoying sometimes," Midnightpaw muttered, her fur fluffed up slightly._

"_Why doesn't your sister seem to like you… or me?" Graypaw asked, tilting his head at her._

"_I don't think she likes rogues… and when I went to congratulate you, she got mad at me," the apprentice meowed, glancing at the white flop of fur in the den. "I just wish she would forgive me already…"_

"_Don't worry; she'll start talking to you soon."_

"_Hey Midnightpaw, come here!" Yellowgaze's voice echoed through the clearing, and said apprentice flattened her ears in anger. _

_She stalked over to her cream-yellow furred mentor. "What do you want, Yellowgaze?" Midnightpaw asked._

"_I want you to catch three prey today. And bring a mouse for Jaggedleg—you know how cranky elders get," Yellowgaze ordered, her fluffy tail moving side-to-side slightly behind her. "Don't forget, either, or I'll have your pelt, puny apprentice!"_

* * *

Midnightpaw really needed her pelt for leaf-bare, and it was right around the corner. She couldn't afford to lose it, so she had rushed out of camp without a second thought. She stared down at the dead mouse between her paws, slowly making a small hole so she could bury it there. After she was done, she started heading towards the lake to see if she could find prey there.

She skidded to a halt when she saw something white among the green bushes. Midnightpaw stalked forward slowly, making sure her scent was blowing its way. Whatever that animal was, it smelled great. Just as she was about to pounce, a twig snapped somewhere close-by, and it hopped away.

Eager to see who ruined her chances of food so she could pound them to a pulp, she whipped around…

To see Snowpaw….

"Snowpaw, what are you doing here?" Midnightpaw asked, looking at her sister with wide golden eyes.

"Ruining your day. Nothin' special," Snowpaw meowed, shrugging. "Look Midnightpaw, Graypaw's bad news, and you need to stay away from him. He'll just end up breaking your heart."

"N-no, Graypaw's too nice to do that," the black apprentice retorted, glaring at Snowpaw hatefully. "You're just making this up so you can ruin my day more."

"Who said I was?" Midnightpaw's sister circled her slowly, her crystal blue eyes narrowing. "It's clear Kestrelstar wanted to make sure he didn't end up betraying us by giving him Stormheart as a mentor. And since I'm Kestrelstar's apprentice, that requires me to watch anyone that makes friends with him. I have the right to rip your pelt off right now."

_Could Snowpaw actually be right? Am I betraying the warrior code by being friends with Graypaw? _Midnightpaw just continued to glare at Snowpaw. _But still… just because she's Kestrelstar's apprentice doesn't mean she can get anything she wants! _"I don't believe you," the fluffy apprentice spat. "Just leave Graypaw and I alone. He's the only _real_ friend I have."

"Are you saying I'm not your friend?" Snowpaw spat, her eyes shining with malice.

Midnightpaw dug her claws into the sand, her fur bristling. "If you think I'm your friend, you're hare-brained!"

"You wouldn't dare say that to my face in camp," the white she-cat challenged, taking a step forward.

"Try me."

Snowpaw let out a yowl of fury and launched herself at Midnightpaw, claws scoring her flank. Hissing, the other apprentice swiped her paw at her sister, creating a nick in her ear.

After a five minute tussle, they finally pulled apart. Midnightpaw was drenched in blood, and Snowpaw looked exactly the same. Other than a few scratches though, they were fine.

"This isn't over," Snowpaw hissed through gritted teeth.

"Right back at you," Midnightpaw growled. And with that they both turned around and sped through the forest.

"You're late," Yellowgaze commented as Midnightpaw trudged through the camp. "And what's with all those scratches?"

"I ran into a fox," the black she-cat murmured, dropping two thrushes into the prey pile a few pawsteps away and then veering to the side to drop a mouse at Jaggedleg's paws.

"A fox, you say?" the cream-yellow furred she-cat asked, her whiskers twitching slightly. "We would've noticed it by now. Now if you have nothing better to do, go see if Snowpaw needs help with something."

Midnightpaw just groaned and padded towards her snow-white sister.

* * *

**Ugh… not much of a filler if you ask me, and this chapter was sorta off… sorry about that. *sweatdrop* Now, even if you didn't like the chapter, flame and criticize all you want, I don't mind.**

**~Orangeflight of ShadowClan**


	6. Authors Note

**No, this isn't an update! D: I'm sorry. But that last chapter seemed off, and I can't find a way to write another chapter with that one in the background. So I need time to write something up in school. xD Don't worry, I'll be updating soon though, and I'll also update my other stories! Well, see you, my loyal reviewers, soon!**

_**And to make this part of the FFN rules, I'll write a short paragraph for story content.**_

Orangepaw blinked, her lime green eyes filling with sorrow. "I'm sorry, Lionstar, but Stormheart is dead…" She felt her orange tabby fur prickle slightly. Stormheart was her mentor, and the only cat that actually cared about her.

**Well, see you soon in the update of: ****When Midnight Strikes****! :3**

**~Orangeflight of ShadowClan**


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